Chapter 10
The two men ran towards the group and the little girl clutched Izuku's leg tighter. She had white hair and tear-filled red eyes. The two men reached them and Izuku used analyze on each of them.
[Analyze: Hojo Yu (Shie Hassaikai Yakuza)]
[LVL: ?]
[Quirk/Class: ?]
[Health: ?/?]
[Stamina: ?/?]
[Mana: ?/?]
[Highest Stat: ???: ??]
[Warning: Enemy is too high level for you to see their information. Combat is advised against.]
[Analyze: Setsuno Toya (Shie Hassaikai Yakuza)]
[LVL: 21]
[Quirk/Class: Larceny]
[Health: 290/290]
[Stamina: 370/370]
[Mana: 220/220]
[Highest Stat: Agility: 37]
"Careful, they're members of the Yakuza." Izuku says as he and his party prepare to fight. The little girl was still holding onto him, so Izuku picked her up. "Hi there." He said as gently as he could. "Don't worry, we won't let them get you. Stay with him, and we'll get these big bullies to leave us alone, ok?" The little girl nodded and Izuku handed her to Toshi, who wouldn't be able to fight in his weakened form, but he would be able to hold the girl and keep her out of the way of the fight.
Before any actual combat started, Toshi said "To prevent any sort of legal trouble from this, I give you five my express permission to fight." He briefly covered the little girl's ears as he said, "Kick their asses." He had also seen the screen that Izuku saw, and knew they were Yakuza. But at the same, neither one was actually that strong. While Izuku could only see the information of one of them, Toshi had seen the info for both. And while the other one was a bit stronger than his companion, Toshi doubted they were as dangerous as some of the other Yakuza members they could have run into.
"Look at that Yu, these little shits want to play hero. How about we show them how dangerous being a hero really is?" Setsuno said with a smirk underneath his mask as he pulled out a knife and searched for something else. "Shit! I forgot my gun!"
The larger man the gamer revealed to be named Hojo also smirked and activated his quirk, which caused crystals to form all over his body. "Sounds like a plan. Also, really? You think we're gonna need a fucking gun to kill these fucks? The walking skeleton back there looks like he's about to fall over dead any minute as is!"
"You're right. Infact, how about we play fair! We'll let one of them have the first hit! Which one will it be kids? Octoboy, you wanna take a shot at us? No? How about you rockface? Heh, nevermind. You look like you're about to piss yourself. What about the chicks?" Izuku stepped forward. "So, it's the pipsqueak. Go ahead. Take your best- OH SHIT!" Izuku formed his scales and claws and punched the thinner man in the chest, sending him flying back into the alleyway. An explosion of flames left his shirt and tie singed badly as he hit the ground.
A sloppy and slow punch came towards Izuku from Hojo, but it was caught and stopped by Mezo, although the six-armed boy was struggling a lot to hold back the punch. "Not bad kids. You're both stronger than you look." Hojo clearly wasn't much of a fighter. He most likely relied on brute strength and his quirk to win fights, not any sort of actual skill. So, when he fought people who could almost match his strength, it left him in a very bad position.
That situation got worse when Izuku pulled his sword out of his inventory and swung it at the crystals on Hojo's arm. But right before the blade of the sword made contact, mostly so Izuku could test how strong the crystals were, it vanished from his hands. "Heh. I don't know where the hell you got this from, but thanks. It gives me something other than my knife to work with."
Nobody had seen him move to grab the sword, and he was still standing far away from them. His agility wasn't high enough to give him the sort of speed required for him to have done that on his own, so the only logical explanation was that a quirk was involved. Setsuno said "You're right about that. It is my quirk, Larceny. With it, I can steal just about anything! What are you gonna do now?" Once again, his taunting caused problems for him. A beam of silver energy shot towards him, and he just barely dodged it. "WHAT THE FUCK?!" He shouted.
"Setsuno, maybe we should retreat and call reinforcments." Hojo said as he got sent flying back after being hit by two fists glowing with red energy. "These kids might be more than we can handle on our own."
It was clear that neither of them was super smart, but Setsuno was definitely the dumber one. This was proven by his next action. "Screw that. It's just a couple of kids and one skeleton looking fuck. We're members of the best Yakuza in the country. Plus, if they manage to escape with Eri then you know what the boss 'll do to us!" He raised the sword clumsily as he struggled to hold it up with one hand.
Before the two could decide on anything, Melissa made her move. She didn't want to lose her new and favorite invention to the smaller man's quirk, but his hands were full at the moment. So, she risked it and her arm cannon appeared. She fired off a few small blasts at each of the Yakuza members. The balls of energy hit their marks, and both men stumbled back from it.
Ochako pulled out her staff and fired another larger beam of energy that hit both of them, causing Setsuno to drop Izuku's sword and the knife he held previously. Izuku scooped both up and put them in his inventory where the man's quirk hopefully couldn't affect them to take them back. "Shit, you're right. We need to get the hell out of here! Let's move!"
The two thugs tried to run, but Koji had other plans. He shouted for the first time in front of people. "S-STOP THEM FROM GETTING AWAY!" The retreating Yakuza members thought he was talking to the other gamers. They thought wrong as a horrifying scene came to life. Birds, stray dogs and cats, and worst of all large rats and cockroaches, appeared from every direction and swarmed the two.
Shivers went down everyone's spines as they looked towards Koji in horror. He stood there with a neutral face as he watched the animals swarm the two Yakuza. They had been chasing the little girl, and she was covered in scrapes, bruises, a small amount of blood, and tons of bandages. Needless to say, he didn't like it, and this was his way of showing it. Melissa said, "Fear the gentle man's fury." in English. Izuku nodded in agreement and translated it to Japanese for Ochako and Mezo.
After the swarm of animals disbanded, the two Yakuza were left on the ground having passed out from fear. The police were called and the two of them were almost begging to be arrested to escape the wrath of Koji, after they had been woken up of course. No charges were pressed because a detective who knew All Might was the one who showed up and he believed them when they said that All Might gave them permission to fight and knew better than to question why All Might didn't handle it himself.
Though, Toshi was still brought to the police station to fill out a report. When the question of what to do with the little girl came up, the detective called for an ambulance. Because the girl who had identified herself as Eri refused to let go of Izuku after Toshi had handed her back to him at her insistence, he was pretty much required to go with her. So, he was also let into the ambulance and helped keep Eri calm as best he could. Koji was also allowed to go after he showed off his healing ability by taking care of her more minor injuries.
Izuku made sure not to upset Eri, because that would upset Koji. And upsetting Koji was a horrible idea that would very likely lead to a case of Musophobia and Katsaridaphobia.
While in the hospital, another serious problem arose. Eri had a deathly fear of doctors and nurses. The moment one stepped into the room, she started freaking out and separated from Izuku for the first time since he started holding her again to hide under the bed. It took almost an hour of Izuku talking to her calmly to get her to come out, even after the doctors and nurses left.
Eri had experienced that left her terrified of any sort of medical staff. Izuku and Koji suspected that the only reason she wasn't freaking out just from being in a hospital room was because they were there. Ochako, Melissa and Shoji weren't allowed in the room because too many people might crowd her. The main doctor wanted Izuku and Koji out too, but Eri started shaking and crying when the subject was brought up and the looks he was given dissuaded him from continuing with that request.
"W-what do we do now?" Koji asked Izuku. Neither boy wanted to leave Eri, but it was also impossible for them to stay by her side 24/7. Especially with school and preparation for U.A.
It surprised Izuku just how much Koji respected him. Infact, all four of the others looked up to Izuku as their leader already, even if Izuku didn't think he had earned that title yet, nor would he ever. "I'm not sure just yet. This whole situation is complicated. We can't tell if anything is wrong with her medically because she won't let anyone but us get close. And we can't leave her alone or with the system, because a Yakuza group is after her. We don't know what sort of connections the group has, or if they have somebody inside the system that will make it easier for them to get her back." He looked down at the little girl who had finally managed to fall asleep.
Then Izuku got an idea. It would take some effort to make it work, and they would need to bring somebody else into the fold who would be ok with watching her all day, but it just might work. He called Ochako, Melissa and Shoji into the room, despite the doctor trying to keep them from overwhelming Eri. "What's up Midoriya?" Ochako asked.
"We need to find a way to keep Eri safe. I've been thinking. We don't know much about the Yakuza group, but we should assume they're dangerous with a lot of connections. We should tell somebody else about this and bring them in. And I have a good idea of who to bring in." Izuku started off, and three more people entered the room.
One of the people who entered said "A wise decision." He wore a silver suit and had green hair with a few yellow lines as well, and he had triangle framed glasses on his face. "I am Sasaki Mirai, also known as the hero Sir Nighteye. And I'm the lead investigator when it comes to the Shie Hassaikai Yakuza group."
The other gamers recognized the other two as well. One was Toshi, in his small form as to not attract attention, and the other was the detective who arrived at the scene before. He had introduced himself as Detective Tsukauchi. The three men stayed back incase Eri woke up so she wouldn't panic at seeing them, in case it was adults in general that set her off. Sure, she had allowed Toshi to hold her during the fight to keep her safe, but it could have been a heat of the moment decision where she only wanted to be kept away from the two men chasing her.
Nighteye asked "While I can see that you are intelligent enough to assume your enemies are more dangerous than the two low level grunts you defeated, which you should not have been fighting in the first place might I add," He glared pointedly at All Might with that statement, putting all the blame on him instead of the kids. "I have to insist you let the adults handle this. And I also have to ask what you meant by telling somebody else and bringing them in. As well as who you had in mind to bring in."
Off to the side, Toshi nodded and said "You can tell them Young Midoriya. I trust both of these two with my life and the secret of my quirk, even if Mirai and I had a falling out some time ago."
And so, Izuku did. He told them about the gamer, and about how he planned on making Eri an ally to keep her safe in the player housing, as well as making his mother an ally so somebody would be able to watch Eri at all times. "I see. And you are sure this 'player housing' you speak of is secure?" Izuku nodded. They had tested it, and when they brought up the GPSs on their phones to see where the island actually was, all they got was an error message. "Very well. It seems like a good temporary solution, at least until we can neutralize the Yakuza threat. I request that 'make me an ally' as well, however that works."
The five gamers talked it out in whispers for a minute before nodding to eachother and Izuku spoke again. "We can do that." He tapped the air a few times and a screen appeared in front of Nighteye. He hit accept and the screens Izuku had open became visible to him. He then turned to Eri and used analyze.
[Analyze: Eri]
[LVL: 1]
[Quirk/Class: Rewind]
[Health: 30/30]
[Stamina: 50/50]
[Mana: 100/100]
[Highest Stat: Intelligence/Wisdom: 5]
He wasn't sure what her quirk could do from just her name, so Izuku tried something new. He could use analyze on a dungeon, so why couldn't he use it on a quirk? And luckily, it worked, and he got information about what Rewind could do.
[Analyze: Quirk: Rewind
Description: Accumulates energy over time, which is stored in the horn mutation on the user's head. The horn will grow larger the more energy is stored and shrink once the energy is used up. The stored energy can be used to reverse the flow of time on an object, making it younger instead of older. The reversal of time is not permanent and ends once the user either stops the quirk or runs out of energy. The reversed flow runs much faster than the normal flow of time. Entire years can be reversed in a matter of minutes, and the speed of the reversed flow will increase the longer the quirk is used. Completely expending the energy supply will cause exhaustion and slight feverish symptoms in the user. Non-living objects are not affected, and items can be rewound out of existence if exposed to the quirk for too long. Humans and animals can be affected by the quirk. Being rewound is a painful process and the pain increases the longer you are rewound for.]
A different screen appeared letting Izuku know that his quirk database had been updated, and another screen let him know that the amount of detail in analyzing quirks with the skill depended on how well he could have analyzed the quirk on his own if he had seen it in action multiple times. "We need to teach her how to control her quirk as soon as possible." He decided. "It's too dangerous for her to use without knowing how to at least stop it."
Everyone who could see the screens had also seen by looking over Izuku's shoulder and agreed. Even if she didn't mean to activate it, it could accidently kill them if she couldn't shut it off. "Another good reason for me to be involved. I am quite skilled at training others to use their quirks to their fullest potential, and it should be simple to teach Eri to activate and deactivate her quirk at will." Nighteye was secretly thinking of training the girl to use her quirk not only to keep it from accidently killing anyone, but also to help heal All Might to his prime.
Speaking of All Might, Toshi decided to drop one more bomb just because it was most likely the best opportunity he would get for a while. "I can also think of another job that you would be a very good fit for. Mostly because you are one of the only people who would have any idea of how to do this, and the other person would be..." He paused for a minute to think of the best way to put this so he could avoid a large yellow boot to the face. "Too enthusiastic for basic control training."
The former sidekick of All Might's eyes widened as he realized what the number one hero was talking about. "You've chosen a successor?!"
"Indeed, I have. I chose young Midoriya. Although, he still has to prepare his body before he can obtain the quirk. He is working on that by cleaning up Takobah beach. Recently he has started clearing dungeons every day with his party. Although, they are in need of a new one as the old one will no longer let them enter, and the other one they found-"
"Is never to be mentioned again!" All five members of the gamer shot All Might a very pointed look as he started to bring that catastrophe up. The number one hero held his hands up in surrender as he changed subjects.
He said, "I originally planned for him to receive the quirk shortly before the entrance exam, but he is about a month ahead of schedule currently and I predict that he will finish sooner than that still."
Izuku chose not to mention how he could technically use stat points to boost his stats enough to the point he could most likely handle the quirk fairly well, as he had been getting five bonus stat points every level. While he could have boosted his stats, he decided to save them for now while his stats were still low, and it would be easy to boost them just by doing activities that would use those stats. His charisma seemed to be increasing on its own however, and he had no idea why.
The calculating gaze of Sir Nighteye turned towards Izuku. He was trying to deduce whether or not it would be possible for Izuku to match All Might's standards. All Might saw this and said "I did not pick him to make another me, Mirai. I picked him because he reminded me of myself, and I plan to make him into so much more than I ever was."
Nodding, Nighteye asked a single question to Izuku. "What sort of hero do you want to be, Midoriya?"
"When people look at All Might, they see somebody who will keep them safe from villains, but they don't see somebody who they can tell their problems to. To them, All Might seems like an untouchable god, not a normal person like the rest of us. I want to be the kind of hero who you can sit down with and just talk to. Somebody you can tell all your problems and worries and insecurities to. There need to be people to fight the villains and save people, and I want to be one of those people, but I also know just how much good somebody just listening to you can be. And I also want to be that sort of person."
Silence emanated through the room. Nobody knew what to say to that. Eventually, Nighteye spoke. "I see. Quite the lofty goal, but I cannot help but agree. Many villains could have chosen a better path if they just had somebody to talk to. It wouldn't solve all the problems, but it would be a start."
"And that's the best I could hope for. This problem has been growing for hundreds of years with quirks appearing and those with quirks being discriminated against, and now it's the opposite. Those without quirks are basically not allowed to live their lives. And the same goes for those with villainous quirks. That isn't a problem that can be solved by a single generation. But if I don't take the first step, then there might not be anyone else willing to do it."
Turning to All Might, Nighteye said "He really is perfect, other than the fact that he is nowhere near physically fit enough to use the full power of your quirk. But that might be a blessing in disguise. If I remember correctly, when you first became a hero, you were still figuring out control and caused more than your fair share of property damage because you started off at 100%." Toshi got embarrassed as he was called out for his rocky start to the hero business.
"Now, we just need to find a way for the doctors to make sure Eri is ok without scaring her." And that was the biggest challenge they would ever face in their lives.
"THEY DID WHAT?!" A man in an expensive looking bird mask and outfit screamed at his underling. "WE NEED ERI FOR OUR PLANS! FIND HER! GET HER BACK! AND KILL EVERYONE INVOLVED WITH TAKING HER AWAY FROM ME! AND BRING ME THE TWO FAILURES THAT LET HER ESCAPE!"
"Right away sir. I will send out teams to look for her in every single city. We will not rest until the girl is back in your clutches." The other man in the room, who was dressed like a plague doctor, assured his boss while staying out of arms reach for his safety. "I am sure we can put our two newest recruits, Rappa and Tengai, will be anxious for their first real field test. And a prison break is one of the best ways we can test them. The failures will be yours to punish within the week."
If they couldn't get Eri back, they couldn't finish their work. And if they couldn't finish their work, the Yakuza would fully die out. One thing was for certain. The Shie Hassaikai would not let this slight go without punishment. By the end of the week, somebody would be a bloody smear on the wall! Overhaul would make sure of it.
Chapter 11
Over the week, a lot happened. First, all the parents of the gamers were made aware of the situation, although it wasn't easy to convince any of them that the gamer was real. Inko agreed to watch Eri in the player housing and instantly fell in love with the girl. Izuku and the others found another dungeon to go through, and they cleared it at least three times a week. Melissa had made each of them a new piece of gear to use with the help of her class. And during his spare time, Izuku cleaned Takoba at a much quicker rate than ever before.
By far the biggest thing that happened ended up proving that Izuku was right to suggest keeping Eri in the player housing at all times. Over a dozen members of the Shie Hassaikai Yakuza had been caught terrorizing people for information on Eri and arrested. And the two members that had been captured by the gamers were also broken out of prison. They were the only ones who had broken out after being arrested, so everyone assumed those two were special somehow. Every member that was captured was interrogated by the best detectives the police force had to offer, but none of them would reveal the location of the base. Even Tsukauchi was unable to help with his lie detector quirk.
The only thing he managed to get out of any of the captured members was that if any of them said anything, their boss would find out and kill them in the most painful way possible. But letting the bastards get away with what happened to Eri was out of the question. It took a lot of convincing and even bribery with apples, but Izuku and Melissa, each of whom was surprisingly good with kids, managed to get her to calm down enough to let the doctors examine her, and also got her to tell them what happened to her. If looks could kill, then the looks on everyone's faces in that room when she said what the 'bird-men' did to her would have committed genocide on the universe's population several times over.
But unfortunately, Eri couldn't tell anyone much else. So, getting revenge for her would have to wait. In the meantime, the gamers had a new goal. Make Eri as happy as possible. The island provided just about anything they could ever want or need, and anything it didn't provide could be gotten elsewhere. During any free time, they played with Eri and she very quickly became their mascot, even if she wasn't a gamer.
Also, Mezo and Izuku got their match in foosball. Mezo was good and his quirk helped him immensely, but he still couldn't even get one ball past Izuku. The green-haired teen had extremely quick reflexes and his analysis skills proved to be useful for more than just studying quirks. He figured out Mezo's strategy and predicted the moves he was making. Nobody would ever doubt that Mezo was good, but Izuku was better.
The many video game systems in the game room were also put to use. Eri had never played one before, but she enjoyed it. As it turned out, both Eri and Ochako were monsters at fighting games, despite neither ever playing them before. The two of them went undefeated for a while until the other four teamed up against them and finally managed to win one. Barely.
Some of the other games there were old. Games from a company called Nintendo, which hadn't made any new games in almost five years because of the constantly decreasing market for video games. At least in Japan. America was now the biggest source of the company's profits even without new games being released. But that wasn't what mattered. What mattered, was that Eri fell in love with two series. Legend of Zelda, and Pokémon.
One was a story of three people, and the constant struggle for power as one tried to take over the world and the other two tried to stop him. Reborn time and time again to keep up the fight. The other was a story of magical creatures and the society built around them, as well as evil people constantly trying to change the world order in the most destructive and dangerous way possible for their self-interest. Eri didn't exactly understand the stories of the games though. She fell in love with the cute creatures of the Pokémon universe and the outfits of the Legend of Zelda universe.
If they ever found out when her birthday was, everyone knew exactly what to get her. The problem was finding out when it was. Eri was a ghost in the system. No birth record, no quirk registry, nothing. She didn't exist legally speaking. Toshi assured everyone that he had somebody working on that but wouldn't elaborate. So, once again there was nothing they could do for now.
More time passed and the Yakuza patrols stopped almost completely. More and more members that had been captured managed to escape, but nothing ever came of it because nobody knew where their base was. The only clue was that two more Yakuza members were breaking them out. It was a two-man team. One with some sort of barrier quirk who used it to keep the members safe after they were broken out. The other was a large man whose quirk seemed to be a basic strength enhancer but to an extremely powerful degree. He would break in and bust people out and take out any heroes or police who tried to put up a fight, heavily injuring or killing them with ease.
But months passed, and nothing new came from it. Eri was put into the system but was still mostly a ghost. There was just enough information to be able to enroll her in school and allow her to live her life without complications, but no other information was available. Not even her quirk was given a description or even a name. It was just listed as unknown/undefined. Whoever Toshi had put on the case was good.
Even her birthday was figured out. December 21st. There was a massive celebration and lots of presents. Eri didn't exactly understand why, but she enjoyed it nonetheless. And she had almost fully come out of her shell. Eri's favorite present was a onesie of her favorite Pokémon, Ponyta. Specifically, the Galarian version.
Four days later, Inko, who had bought the onesie for Eri, revealed another surprise for them all. She had also bought onesies of various Pokémon for the rest of them too. Izuku got a Riolu onesie, Ochako got a Clefairy onesie, Melissa got a Porygon Onesie, Koji got a Shuckle onesie, and Mezo got a Grapploct onesie. They were really comfortable and somehow in the perfect size for all of them. It made sense for Izuku's to be perfectly sized, but nobody knew or wanted to know how Inko managed to figure out what sizes to buy for the rest of them.
Eri was also given a bunch of plushies for her team on Pokémon, as well as the lead Pokémon for all the rest of the gamers. When she went to bed that night, she fell asleep buried in a mountain of plushies.
More time passed, and it was finally time. There was just one week before the entrance exam, but Izuku had finally finished the beach. It was time for him to receive OFA. And that was what would happen in a few hours, but waiting wasn't easy for Izuku. But then again, if you were told that you were about to receive what was quite possibly the strongest power in the world, would you be patient? No, no you would not.
Without anything better to do, he looked at his stat page even though he had already looked at it multiple times in the past hour.
[Character: Midoriya Izuku
Lvl: 6
Exp: 197/250 until level up.
STR: 33 + (20 +20%) = 59
AGI: 27
INT: 38
WIS: 25
DUR: 28
CHA: 27
HEALTH: 280/280
MANA: 590/590
STAMINA: 270/270
CLASS: Dragonborn (Legendary) LVL 5
SKILLS: Press to see list of skills
QUIRK: None]
He had been using his quirk upgrade points to get the stat boost skills and that combined with his other skill boosting his strength as well as cleaning the beach, his physical stats had all over doubled from what they originally were when he got the gamer. And his strength stat had risen to over four times what it originally was with his draconic strength skill.
The five of them agreed not to go looking for any other dungeons before they started U.A. His extreme growth could be attributed to his cleaning the beach, but if all five of them started to grow stronger at a rate that was almost impossible for normal people to replicate, then it would look pretty suspicious. And that wasn't even counting the fact that they would have combat experience, which was even harder to explain.
So, instead of worrying about finding a way to explain it, they would stop doing dungeons until U.A started. Then it wouldn't look as suspicious when they started to grow even faster than anyone else. They could just attribute it to training outside of school as well, which was the truth. Nobody needed to know how they were training, and with even a small amount of luck, their teachers would just see it as them being extremely dedicated to becoming the best heroes they can be.
Izuku was shaken out of his thoughts by his phone ringing. "Hey Ochako, how are you?"
"I'm fine Izuku. Also, I'm the one who should be asking you that question. Aren't you nervous about today?" Sometime over the last few months, the five of them had started to call each other by their given names, aside from Mezo who still called Izuku little dragon most of the time.
"Yeah, I am. I haven't stopped pacing for half an hour, and I've looked at my stat page about six times already." He admitted.
A new voice asked "Do you want Ochako and me to come over and keep you company? Help you calm down a little?"
That did sound pretty nice to Izuku. "Wait, Melissa? I thought you were still moving in; did you finish already?"
"Yep. Ochako's quirk makes it easy to move boxes around. And with her help putting everything where it goes, we finished pretty quickly." Melissa answered.
Before Izuku could answer her question, he got a text from All Might. "Some company would be nice, but All Might just texted me. He finished whatever he was doing early, so I'm going now. I'll see you both later."
"Cmon. Like we'd miss you finally getting a quirk Izuku. We'll see you there." Ochako replied. She hung up the phone and Izuku teleported to the beach where All Might was already waiting for him.
The hero said "I will never get used to the fact that you can just teleport anywhere you want. This place looks incredible. You pulled through and surpassed my expectations. I didn't think I would be able to transfer OFA to you until the day of the entrance exam, but we have an extra week for you to practice it."
One by one the other members of the gamer, as well as Eri and Inko, appeared behind Izuku at the beach to support him. "And here you stand, stronger than you have ever been before, strong enough to take on the entrance exam even without my quirk. Behind you stand your allies and family. Now, young man. Eat this!" All Might plucked one of his hairs and held it out to Izuku.
Laughter was barely contained from everyone besides Izuku and All Might. "A-are you messing with me?" Izuku asked, really not wanting to eat All Might's hair.
"Not at all! Why would I do that? You have to take in my DNA for the quirk to transfer! So, eat, eat, eat!"
Reluctantly, Izuku ate the hair and gagged as his tastebuds were assaulted by at least half a dozen different shampoos and conditioners. It finally became too much and everyone behind him burst out laughing, including a new person. "Toshi, there are other ways to transfer it besides eating hair."
Eyes widened as everyone turned to look at who had spoken. It was a short elderly man wearing a hero costume. "Nana and I just thought it would be funny if that's how you got it. Anyways, what's done is done. Let me get a look at you kid." He was talking to Izuku, who looked very confused and shocked that he knew about OFA.
"All Might, who is this? How do they know about OFA?" Before he could ask any more questions, a foot slammed into his face.
The old man stood on top of the downed Izuku and said "You can call me Gran Torino kid. As for how I know about your quirk, I'm the one who trained that dumbass. When Mirai called me and told me that Toshi had picked a successor and was transferring the quirk today, I decided to come over here and lend a hand. Toshi can't explain things for shit. But before we begin, who are you?"
"Izuku Midoriya, sir," Izuku replied, slightly nervous about the old man in front of him. All Might looked worried but not about the fact that he knew about OFA. What was this old man's deal?
Torino hummed and said nothing for a minute as he looked over Izuku. "You haven't figured it out yet. That's fine, you're not even in a hero school yet so you have time. After the sports festival comes internships. I'll be sending you an offer, and I expect an answer to my question when you accept it." Izuku didn't want to know what would happen if he chose somebody else for the internships, but he knew it wouldn't be good for his health. "It'll take a few hours for OFA to transfer to you, so we'll wait until then to start.
A week later, Izuku felt ready for the entrance exam. He had the gamer, and he had OFA. The past six days had been nothing but painful, but it was worth it for this moment. Ochako stood next to him as they walked to the auditorium, they were assigned to. They had taken a few steps inside the gate when somebody tried to shoulder past Izuku, only for the green-haired boy to not move at all. He turned around to face whoever tried to push him, and it was Bakugo.
"Bakugo." Izuku said calmly. He had dropped the nickname Kacchan a while ago. He could see now that Bakugo didn't deserve a nickname like that.
"Out of my fucking way Deku. Or I'll kick your ass."
Ochako butted in and said "You won't do anything. Look around you. Pro heroes are watching our every move. If you try anything, you won't make it ten steps before they stop you and you'll never get into U.A. Not to mention that you wouldn't beat Izuku."
Normally Bakugo would have exploded and tried to fight them, but he stopped himself. Ochako was right. Hound Dog was staring at them from one side and Midnight was on the other. Neither said anything, but if any of them made an aggressive move, they would take action and stop it. So instead, he stomped off and muttered to himself about how soon he would never have to see Izuku again.
Izuku just sighed. He never held a grudge against Bakugo for what he had done. It just wasn't in his nature to hate or be angry, with one exception. Instead, Izuku was just disappointed. He could see clear as day how Bakugo's attitude and self-centered nature would lead to self-destruction for the blond bomber. Ochako put her hand on his shoulder. "I don't know what his problem with you was, but you don't need to worry about him. You have me, Melissa, Mezo, and Koji. Speaking of, Mezo and Koji are already waiting for us. So, let's get going."
She was right. Izuku couldn't focus on Bakugo right now. He had an exam to pass so he could become the hero he always wanted to be. And nothing would stand in his way!
Chapter 12
After their encounter with Bakugo, Izuku and Ochako ran inside to meet with Koji and Mezo. The four were as ready as they could be for the U.A entrance exam. Gran Torino had mainly focused on helping Izuku get some level of control over OFA, but the old man also took some time to beat the shit out of the other four too.
They all saw why All Might still feared him decades after he was trained. The four of them could only talk for a few minutes before taking the written exam, but it was enough for them to wish each other good luck. It was also enough for Ochako to think of a really good way to motivate them all. Too much stress would make them do worse, and she found the perfect way to get around that. By turning the exam into a game.
"Hey, guys." She said, getting all their attention, as well as a few people nearby. She quickly checked her inventory and saw that she had 50,000 yen leftover from the dungeons. "5,000 yen says I get first place."
It was a bit obvious what Ochako was trying to do, but it worked, nonetheless. Grins broke out on Izuku, Mezo and Koji. "You're on. I'll match your bet of 5,000 and say I get first." Izuku challenged.
After a minute to think over if he wanted to join or not, Shoji said "I'm going to get first. You two will have to settle for second and third. Maybe fourth, what do you say Koji? Want to get in on this?" The shy boy nodded and gave a thumbs up. He still didn't like talking in a crowd, but he was getting much better about it.
"Yes." That was all he managed to get out, but it was enough for the gamers. A boy with bright red hair muttered something about being manly, but the four of them didn't hear him.
The written exam was fairly easy for all four of them. It wasn't made to be the thing that ruined somebody's chance at the hero course, but it was supposed to be difficult enough to make sure that those getting into the school were intelligent enough to be able to learn everything they needed to learn. Plus, the real test was something much more difficult than any written exam could ever be.
After everyone finished the written exam, there was an hour break for lunch. Unfortunately, the gamers couldn't meet up during it because of how large the crowds were, but it was fine. They had talked about everything, and if they needed to tell the others about something then they could use the group chat.
Once that hour had passed, it was time for the second most important part of that day, the explanation for the practical exam. After all, if nobody knew the rules and what the objective was, very few people would pass. Unfortunately, once again the gamers couldn't meet up because there was assigned seating based on schools and school districts, and all four of them went to school in different places. It was made even worse for Izuku because of who he was forced to sit next to. Bakugo.
The long-time bully growled out "Deku." as Izuku sat down next to him. For all his part, Izuku did his best to ignore the blond-haired walking explosive next to him. Which wasn't easy as Bakugo was seething at the mere sight of Izuku strolling in confidently. To him, it just wasn't right. 'Deku', as Izuku had been nicknamed so long ago, should have been afraid to walk into any room. There should have been an explosion and an ass beating waiting for him every single day. And yet, Bakugo had refrained for reasons even he didn't know. And none of the other extras could lay a finger on Izuku, as was made painfully clear any time the green-haired kid went against one of them during gym class.
Before Bakugo had a chance to attack Izuku, a very well-known man stepped onto the platform at the auditorium. "HELLO, LISTENERS! CAN I GET A HEYYYYY?!" He asked loudly, his quirk boosting his voice to levels that were almost painful for those in the front row and anybody with a hearing quirk. The hero Present Mic would be the one to explain everything to them. Izuku could barely stop himself from gushing about how cool the hero was, and he was certain he was shaking with excitement.
Unfortunately, all he got was silence as everyone was either too nervous to say anything or thought it would be weird. "Keeping it mellow. I see how it is. Let's get started so you can all get out of here! The practical will shake down like this! All of you should have gotten a pamphlet. On this pamphlet are three robots of different designs. First up, we have the one-pointer! These are the most common variety of robots you'll see during the exam, as well as the easiest to beat. You get one point for beating 'em. The only real way they'll be able to hurt you is if you stand still and let a group of 'em wail on you for a little while! Other than that, they're slow, they're weak, and they'll pretty much fall apart in the next strong breeze so you shouldn't have any problem smashing 'em to pieces."
The hero paused for a minute to allow everyone to take in the information. Izuku took that time to read the pamphlet he was given. And he saw something very interesting about it, that Present Mic hadn't mentioned at all. "Huh. Each robot has a kill switch. It's protected by a thin plate of armor that's easy to remove. But it only says where it is for the one-pointer." He muttered out loud.
Bakugo glanced over at Izuku and said somewhat civilly "Must be part of the test. Not all these weak-ass extras can destroy a robot as big as they are, so there needs to be a way to take them down without being able to do that. Wonder why he isn't saying shit about it though."
"Another test." Izuku decided. He had heard a bit about briefings from Nighteye during their interactions regarding the Shie Hassaikai, and how it was rare for somebody to go over all the information which is why heroes also had to read the memos given to them. "I bet most people won't even read the packet, just trusting in what Mic's saying."
A boy near them heard everything the two were saying and realized he might have a better chance to pass than he first thought, even with his 'villainous' quirk. He scanned the entire packet as quickly as possible and saw something else on the back side of it. He muttered, "There are rescue points too? How much else are they not telling us about this exam?"
"The next robot is worth two points. There are a few less of 'em than the one-pointers, and they're harder to beat. Their speed can surprise you if you're not careful, so keep an eye out for these guys or you'll need to visit the school nurse after the exam!" Once again, he paused to allow the information to sink in, even if he didn't say as much as he did for the one-pointers. After about a minute, he continued to explain the next robot. "The final robot is worth three points. You won't find very many of these, and they're pretty tough! I don't recommend taking them on unless you're sure you can take them out easily because they can put some serious hurt on you!" Izuku continued to mutter to himself about his plan and Bakugo said something about not being in the same arena as Izuku, but the green-haired teen ignored him.
Towards the front of the auditorium, a tall boy with dark blue hair stood up. "Excuse me!" He said loudly. "These are four robots on this paper! If this is a mistake, then U.A should be ashamed of themselves! AND YOU!" He pointed to Izuku, who stopped muttering. "You have been muttering to yourself the entire time and it is very distracting! If you do not intend to take this seriously then you should leave!"
10 months ago, Izuku would have shrunk in on himself and apologize for muttering. But 10 months ago, he hadn't met Ochako or gotten the gamer, and he hadn't had four others force him to be confident in himself. Now, he wouldn't just take that. "I'm not so sure I'm the problem here. You're the one who stood up and interrupted Present Mic before he could finish his explanation. Also, Present Mic was far louder than I was, and I wasn't the only one muttering. Outside sounds are an inevitability for a hero. You need to learn to deal with that." Izuku sat back down and so did the other boy after sputtering for a moment.
"Woah there! Save that fire for the physical exam! But both of you asked excellent questions!" Mic decided to turn both outbursts into learning opportunities and a way to further his explanation. "You can't expect civilians to stay quiet while you take down a villain or rescue them from natural disasters. Ignoring distractions is a big part of being a hero. It's also something covered in heroics class, so don't worry too much about it if you get easily distracted right now. As for your question Examinee 5111, the robot you're referring to is worth no points. It's an obstacle, not an enemy. It's not impossible to beat, but there's no point to it and It's usually better to ignore it unless you're left with no choice. That about covers everything you need to know. Follow the arrows to the changing rooms, and to the buses taking you to your exam site that is listed on your card. The arrows you need to follow match the color on your card. You have half an hour before the buses leave, but don't use that as an excuse to wander around. This place can be like a maze and if you miss the exam from getting lost, that's your fault. Good luck to you all, and I look forward to seeing the top 36 of you in class next year. I'll let you go with some words of wisdom and our school motto. A true hero is one who combats life's unfairness. Now, GO BEYOND! PLUS, ULTRA!"
Everyone rushed out of the auditorium to find their changing rooms and Izuku saw that he and Mezo were together. "Hey, Shoji. Looks like you and I will be able to settle who did better between us right away, huh?"
The six-armed gamer replied "It seems that way yes. You may have an edge over me in terms of power and speed, but raw strength can only get you so far in this. Don't forget, I can find robots easier than most. I don't plan on losing to you." The two of them finished changing, and the gamer gave them a huge advantage other than the extra skills and stats they got. From the dungeon, they got certain pieces of gear that boosted their stats further. For example, every single member of the gamer had a pair of combat gloves that boosted their damage from punches by 2%. Shoji had three pairs, but the effect didn't stack to 6%. But he still used all three pairs for two reasons. One, it looked really weird if only one pair of hands had gloves, and two, it helped protect his hands from getting damaged by punching something hard as he had from punching the metal crabs.
After getting changed into what they called their dungeon-crawler gear, which was just clothes that they wouldn't care about if they got ruined and any gear they could use from the dungeons, Izuku and Mezo made their way to the bus where they saw they weren't the only ones in that testing site. "Ochako?" Izuku asked as he saw her get on the bus and sit in the seat next to him and Mezo. "You're in this testing site too?"
She nodded. "Yep. What are the odds all three of us get into the same one?" There were a bunch of different areas after all, and the chances for three of them going to the same one was pretty small.
"B-better than you think." Another familiar voice stuttered out. Koji had arrived on the bus as well, and with him was Present Mic. "M-Mr. Mic b-brought me here from a different b-bus." Said pro hero took a step back as he realized being so close to the boy made him uncomfortable.
Koji relaxed a bit and Mic said "Yep. For some reason, the principal wants you four at the same site. Somehow your friend here got put into a different one by accident and I was called to escort him here since I'll be the one watching city B."
"I see. Thank you for bringing him here, sir." Mezo thanked the hero politely.
Mic shot finger guns at Mezo and said "No problem, not so little listener. Just doing my job. Anyways, I have no idea why Nezu wants you four together, but it must be for a good reason because he's never done this before. I'm expecting you to be pretty impressive, so don't let me down." He walked to the front of the bus and everyone else there started whispering to each other about the special treatment the four gamers got. Once at the front of the bus Mic gave an announcement using his quirk. "That's everyone on the bus, so we'll be leaving in just a minute. And I want to cut off any complaints about favoritism before they start. The fact that these four got special treatment can only mean they're in for a tougher time than the rest of you are. It isn't a good thing. Our principal doesn't pick favorites, he picks playthings and experiments. Those four can expect a world of hurt coming toward them, so I recommend the rest of you steer clear, so you don't get caught in the crossfire. That's everything I have to say, so thank you all for listening! Let's get this show on the road!"
The bus started to drive away and a quest appeared for them all.
[Quest Alert!]
[Objective: Survive!]
[Rewards: Getting into U.A. (Forgetting about your bet is strongly advised!)]
[Location: Test Site B (U.A)]
[Quest has already been accepted.]
"Well, that's fucking ominous."
Chapter 13
Melissa groaned as she looked at the time on her phone, and the fact it was still dark out. Why the hell did the support course entrance exam have to take place at four in the god damn morning? None of the other exams would start for another eight hours!
In her half-asleep state, Melissa failed to realize that she was the only one actually at U.A besides three others, none of whom were students. She reached her destination, the support lab in U.A. A familiar face greeted her. "Ah, Melissa, welcome! I apologize for the early rise for you, but Nezu insisted." Toshi apologized and greeted his honorary niece.
"Hi, Uncle Toshi." She said tiredly. Then she realized who else was there, sitting on Toshi's shoulder. "Principal Nezu!"
The strange mouse-like creature said "Hello there! Am I a dog, a bear, or a mouse? What matters is that I'm the principal, Nezu! I'm sure you're wondering why you're here so early, and why I'm here at all!" Melissa nodded, not trusting her voice at the moment. She had heard stories about this being of pure chaos in front of her, and none of them were good. "You see, I am quite intelligent. Thus, when I last met with All Might to fill out paperwork to have him join our lovely staff, I noticed he seemed quite distracted. From there I asked questions and managed to piece together the whole story."
'So this is why Dad was terrified of Nezu.' Melissa thought, before grabbing her phone and trying to warn her friends that Nezu knew about them, but the principal swiped her phone. "Hey!"
"Apologies, but I cannot have you warning your friends. The reason your test will be different is that I am acutely aware of your special abilities, and I decided that the normal test would be far too easy for you and your friends. So, I have a proposition for you. The normal robots in the hero course exam are far weaker than the creatures you are already accustomed to fighting, so the exam will be no trouble for the other members of your group. To correct this, your exam will be to make their exam harder. Give them a real challenge and prove they have the drive to improve themselves even when faced with a far greater challenge than others."
Now Melissa was smiling. She always enjoyed a good challenge while inventing, and it might be fun to see Izuku, Ochako, Mezo, and Koji pushed to their limits again. "What do you need me to do?" She asked.
"First, I want you to explain in detail your abilities. While I was able to discern that you have abilities related to the creation and invention of items, I do not know the specifics of those powers or the limitations, so knowing both will allow me to decide what you will have to do for your exam."
While she had been warned about the nature of Nezu, she was also informed about how smart he was. Melissa knew that if she told him what she could do, he would find ways for her to improve. But there was one thing she still wanted to be able to do. "I'll tell you on one condition. I get to watch the hero course exams when they happen!"
"But of course! And I'll even add in a bonus. If you do well enough, I'll let you be a dual major student! You can be in both the support course, creating hero gear and whatever other invention you can think of, as well as a hero course student, so you can be a hero in the same way as the others!"
"Deal!" Melissa said instantly. She enjoyed inventing things, but she had always wanted to be a pro hero all her life. When she got her powers from the gamer, that dream seemed achievable! She wasn't going to pass up on this opportunity! "We all have powers like a video game. It isn't based on any one game as far as we can tell, instead being a mix of many different features from different games. We all have a class given to us. Each class is given a rarity, ranging from common to mythical. My class is a super-rare class called Technomancer. It lets me make a blueprint, and if I have the materials required, to create the item on the blueprint almost instantly. Right now, I can only make three per day. I currently have all four available."
Nezu looked deep in thought for a minute then asked "After you create a blueprint, are you able to adjust it? Perhaps make it on a larger scale without needing to use up another one of the blueprints?"
"Yes. I can't change any major details, like the kind of item I'm making, but I can make adjustments and change the scale. For example, If I wanted to make a blueprint for a sword, then decided I didn't like the design of it, I could change that without issue, but I couldn't change it to a different weapon like a bow or an axe. Something like a spear might be possible if I didn't change anything else, but I haven't tried it yet. I can also make attachments for things I already made. Like my main weapon, I've added an upgrade to it that lets me fire a different kind of projectile. But if I try to change a blueprint too much, it bursts into flames and isn't replaced. "
"Perfect!" Nezu exclaimed excitedly. He told Toshi he could leave, and the number one hero did so reluctantly. Then Nezu explained what he wanted Melissa to make, and what sort of changes he wanted to test. Melissa even used a new skill that gave her a preview of the design on the blueprint, to see if the changes would work or not. It took an hour for her to change the blueprint enough for it to be deemed acceptable, and another two to get the materials and build the design. Then Nezu had her place it onto a cart and one of the worker bots that he used wheeled it off to somewhere else for some reason.
"I thank you for your cooperation. You are now the first support student to be accepted into U.A this year, and the first hero course student accepted. Oh, and don't worry about the basic subjects. I am already aware that thanks to your father you are well above the high school level and even university level in all of them. I will show you to the teacher's lounge where you can rest until the hero exam starts. And if anyone bothers you, you let them know you have my express permission to be there."
"Why is there a kid here?" One of the teachers who would be grading the hero course entrance exam asked. He wore what looked to be an excavator bucket on his head, identifying him as Power Loader, one of three support heroes in Japan who also act as combat heroes at the same time, and one of only 50 worldwide.
Without looking up from the controls he was fiddling with, Nezu said "This is Melissa Shield. She will be joining the support and hero courses at the start of next year. Her exam was making something that will make the hero course exam harder for certain students, and it is only natural for an inventor to want to see how well their invention completes its function."
The support hero said "I see. Well, Ms. Shield, it's a pleasure to have you with us. Though I have to ask, what did you build?" He didn't even bother asking when she took the exam or why she built something as Nezu worked in ways nobody wanted to understand.
"Sorry, It's a secret. It'll be pretty obvious though, so just keep an eye on test site B." That was a bad sign if the teachers had ever heard one.
And it got even worse when Midnight, the R-Rated hero, asked "Wait, isn't test site B the one where Nezu specifically had those four kids placed?"
Every single teacher present, excluding All Might and one silent man in the corner of the room, said "Oh shit."
The bus ride to the test site was relatively short, even with the campus being as large as it is. On that ride countless conversations were going on, most of them wondering what the deal with the four students specifically put there was, and why they got special treatment.
None of it amounted to anything, and once the bus arrived all the students got off. Present Mic made his way to the top of the large wall surrounding the test site and prepared to start it the moment Nezu gave the signal. During that time Izuku, Ochako, Mezo, and Koji went over their strategy. "This isn't going to be easy. Something strange is happening here, and we must be prepared for anything. Mezo, you need to be our eyes and ears. If you see or hear anything out of the ordinary, let us know immediately!"
The masked teen nodded and said "Of course. After the warning we got on the bus, I know teamwork is essential for us to pass this exam and survive it in general."
"Ochako, you're going to help with mobility. If you can make us all weightless, I can grab you three and bring you around easier. Koji, you keep us healed and if it comes down to it, you know what to do." Both of the other present gamers nodded.
A new person walked over. It was the same boy from the auditorium who interrupted Mic. "You four! If you intend to talk the entire time, then leave! First, there were the unusual circumstances of you being here. Then there was the warning from Present Mic. Now you are distracting others with your inability to stay quiet! Your presence here is disrespectful to this exam and this school!"
The four gamers all rolled their eyes with enough force to reverse the way the earth rotated. "Ignore him, guys. We have more important things to do than listen to a hypocrite like him. For the robots themselves, I doubt we'll have much trouble. None of them are that strong, and we've dealt with worse. Koji, I know you're not the best front-line fighter, but I know you can do this. Ochako, Mezo, you two know what to do, but don't try to bite off more than you can chew. We don't need to take needless risks. And Mezo, be careful about your hands. We don't know how tough the armor on the robots will be, and none of us want you hurting yourself."
"Thank you for the vote of confidence Little Dragon." The four started to move closer to the gate for when the exam started, and the boy from before tried to grab Izuku's shoulder and speak again, but Mezo grabbed the hand and squeezed gently. "The decision you are trying to make is a poor one. I recommend you reconsider your actions before you come to regret them. Little Dragon does not take kindly to being touched without permission."
After years of bullying, one might think Izuku was starved for any sort of physical contact, but it was the opposite for him. He hated people touching him without permission and often had bad reactions to being touched unexpectedly by anyone other than Melissa, Ochako, or his mother. The blue-haired boy yanked his arm away and backed off. "Fine. But if you-" Mezo stopped paying attention and started walking off with the other three. "HEY! I wasn't done talking yet!" He was ignored.
Izuku pulled up his Class Skill Tree to look at the three different skills he got once his class hit level 5.
[Class: Dragonborn (Legendary)
(Skill: Blood of the Ruby Dragon)
(Skill: Draconic Weapons) (Skill: Natural Armor)
(Skill: Draconic Strength)
(Skill: Draconic Appearance) (Skill: Fire Breath) (Skill: Enhanced Senses)
(Skill: Hidden: Unlock: LVL 7) (Skill: Flight: Unlock: LVL 7)]
Of the three skills, he got Draconic Appearance was the least useful. It was a strange skill, because while it was a fusion skill. Instead of having to activate Draconic Weapons and Natural Armor separately, he could activate them both at once, and it made him look different. Instead of scales covering his body, he shifted into something that looked similar to a Dragonborn that you would see in video games only without the wings, which he felt was appropriate. But the skill didn't give him any other bonuses other than a slightly reduced stamina cost. It was a cool skill, just not a super powerful one.
Enhanced Senses was probably the most useful of the three. It was a passive skill that enhanced all his senses by a decent amount. His eyesight was sharper, and he could see in the dark, his hearing was on the same level as a minor hearing enhancement quirk, his sense of smell was similar to that of a dog or cat, and his reflexes were much more impressive. The only surprising part about it is that it made his eyes shine in the dark.
By far Izuku's favorite new skill was the last one. Not only did it make it easier to explain his abilities as a mutation of his parent's quirks, but it was also the most powerful skill he had at the moment. It was a simple skill. It allowed him to breathe fire, and it based its damage on his intelligence and wisdom stats, similar to Ochako's ranged skills, which she had two of. The main difference between Fire Breath and Moon Beam was that Izuku could use more mana to keep the skill going for some time, about 30 seconds before he ran out of mana, while Ochako couldn't extend it like that, and force it to use more mana only made the beam larger and stronger. Plus, Ochako could only double the mana cost to double the damage, instead of being able to adjust the mana cost to adjust the power. Her Sun Beam skill worked similarly, but it dealt fire damage instead of light damage and also produced more light than the Moon Beam.
Seeing as Izuku was going over his skills the other three decided to do the same.
[Class: Space Walker (Legendary)
(Skill: Child of the Stars)
(Skill: Spacebound) (Skill: Moon Beam)
(Skill: Sun Beam)
(Skill: Star Ship) (Skill: Orbit) (Skill: Beam Rain)
(Skill: Celestial Explosion: LVL 12)]
Star Ship was a skill that would help with Ochako's mobility. It formed a platform underneath her that she could use to fly or go over water. When she was done with it, she could either just make it disappear, or shatter. If she shattered it, the shards would fly out in every direction and burn anyone they hit as the shards and the star was made out of light. Orbit was something that worked well in tandem with her quirk. If something was light enough, she could make it orbit around her as a sort of shield. She couldn't change the speed at which it orbited, but it only took a small amount of mana to activate the skill and it thankfully didn't consume more mana as the skill stayed active. The only other downside other than the unchangeable speed was that it could only affect an object for a minute at a time at level one. Her final new skill was Beam Rain. It was an enhancement skill for Moon Beam, Sun Beam, and any other skills she got that were like them. Instead of firing in a beam, she could make it split into dozens of smaller beams that did less damage but could hit large groups of enemies all at once.
[Class: Brawler (Uncommon)
(Skill: Power Blow)
(Skill: Earthshaker) (Skill: Fists of Fury)
(Skill: Empowered Strike: LVL 8) ]
Power Blow was a skill Mezo used a lot, and it was a powerful one. The skill doubled the damage Mezo could deal with punches and kicks, but only for one hit before it needed to be reactivated. Earthshaker was a skill that allowed Mezo to punch or kick the ground and cause a shockwave that would damage and push back enemies. It also hit allies, so it was one he would need to be careful using. The final skill complimented the other two perfectly. It increased the speed at which he could punch and reduced the mana/stamina costs for any punch-based skill.
[Class: Priest Apprentice (Uncommon)
(Skill: Restore)
(Skill: Cure) (Skill: Smite)
(Skill: Soothe Pain: LVL 8) ]
Koji was the healer of the group. His main skill healed others. It was called restore and healed based on Koji's DUR stat. Cure was similar, but instead of healing, it removed status conditions and illnesses. Smite was an offensive skill that worked like Ochako's and Izuku's skills, but with a slightly lower damage multiplier at 1.3 instead of 1.5.
Because they were all in a party, they could see each other's screens. Mezo and Koji felt slightly jealous of how many more skills Izuku and Ochako had, and how much higher rarity they were compared to their own. Melissa also had a higher rarity class, but she had far fewer skills, and because of the limitations of the only skill she could use to level up her class, her class was only level 3 compared to Mezo, Koji, Izuku, and Ochako all being about double that.
Before the four could check any other screen, the gate opened, and they raced in. Mezo and Izuku heard the same boy from earlier complaining about how that was cheating, but Mic said "THOSE FOUR HAVE THE RIGHT IDEA DUDE! REAL LIFE HAS NO COUNTDOWN! GET GOING BEFORE THEY TAKE ALL THE POINTS!"
Inside the fake city, the four gamers were tearing apart the robots with ease. Even the three-pointers were weaker than the crabs they faced in the beginner dungeon they used to train. Ochako was using her quirk to throw around robots, Koji was using his impressive strength to hold them in place while one of the other three took it out, and Izuku and Mezo were tearing them apart with their incredible strength. None of them needed to use the skills they got from the gamer yet, and Ochako was only using her quirk to make the robots weightless, not using the other skill she had access to.
By the time they had taken out the first group of robots, the rest of the examinees finally arrived to fight. Izuku said "Staying together might not be as good of an idea as I first thought. With this many people here, splitting up and taking out robots near the outskirts of the city might be our best bet."
Mezo said "Good idea." He formed a few ears on his arms and then spoke again. "But we shouldn't go too far from the center. As we get further away from where we are now, there are fewer and fewer robots. And after about ten blocks, there aren't any robots at all." The other three nodded and all ran in different directions.
As Izuku ran away he shouted, "By the way, it's time to kick things up a notch!" He activated his Draconic Appearance skill and shredded a robot next to him with his claws. Mezo's fists glowed red as he slammed them into the ground, the shockwave destroying two robots at the same time. Ochako blasted a robot with a beam of silver energy and blasted a large hole in its torso. Koji stayed closer to the center than any of the others, using small explosions of light to break robots and healing those who were injured with his other skill.
Swarms of robots attacked each of the gamers, even when there were other examinees closer to some of them. It was almost like whoever programmed the robots programmed them to specifically attack those four once they got within a certain distance. Izuku found himself cornered by a bad decision he made. After chasing one robot down a dead-end alley, a large group of other robots, mainly three-pointers, appeared at the exit. If he tried to take them down one at a time, he might be overwhelmed by their attacks because of the tight space making it impossible to dodge them all. So, he took a deep breath and activated Fire Breath. A massive inferno of yellow-orange flames washed over the robots and the sides of the building, thankfully not lighting the buildings on fire. The attack lasted only three seconds, but there was no sign of the robots left, just piles of ash, scorched concrete, and asphalt.
On the opposite side of the test site, Mezo almost buried himself in rubble by accident. He had used Earthshaker on a large group of robots right next to a building. The attack hit the building and caused one of the walls to shatter. The rest of the building shook and started to collapse. "Oh shit." He turned and ran the other way, only slowing to grab another examinee who seemed to have the same idea as him in going to this area where there was nobody else around. They hadn't seen the collapsing building yet and were still fighting a one-pointer. He shouted "HEY!" When Mezo grabbed him and kept running but didn't complain further when he looked back and saw what Mezo was running from.
Toward the northern edge of the test site, Ochako rained down destruction from on top of a building. After using her quirk to get up high to be able to see better, she used Moon Beam and Sun Beam to blast robots without worrying about being snuck up on. There was a surprising amount of them, and one of the three-pointers that managed to see her shot a rocket towards her, but she blew it out of the air with Sun Beam, which continued going and hit the robot's other missiles, causing them to explode and take out the robot and the few near it. But after racking up a couple of dozen points, she wasn't able to find any other robots from the position she was in. So instead, she put her other two skills and her quirk to use. Starship made a platform that she jumped onto, and she floated down towards the ground to use orbit on the rubble and used orbit on it. Her quirk made it light enough to do so. With scraps from destroyed robots as her shield, she raced into the largest group of robots she could find and blew them all up using beam rain. A beam of bright silver energy broke into dozens of smaller beams. When they hit robots, they didn't destroy them outright as the single beams did, but the smaller beams could still pierce the armor of the robots and destroy the circuitry inside them, making them inoperable.
Koji stayed near the center and used his quirk. While there weren't any animals nearby capable of destroying robots, that wasn't his goal. His goal was to save a group of examinees that had been surrounded. And for some reason, there were almost a hundred birds close enough to be affected by his quirk. The birds grabbed the examinees and carried them through the air and out of danger, where Koji healed them. Then he turned back towards the group of robots that had been slowly approaching and started firing off smites, each spell capable of taking out one robot each. The army of robots had been reduced from two dozen to six before Koji stopped to let his mana regenerate.
"Should we give him rescue points for that?" One teacher questioned while referring to the examinee Mezo had rescued. "Sure, he saved him from the collapsing building, but he was the one who caused the building to collapse in the first place."
"Hmm. I say we give him half what that would normally earn him. He might have been the one to make the problem, but it was an accident, and he did his best to rescue the one caught up in it." One of the others offered. Everyone else agreed.
Midnight asked "And what about this young man here? How many rescue points would that earn him?"
"The maximum anybody can earn in this exam. I say a perfect sixty points." Nezu decided. Of course, the others would all have to agree because he could only give ten on his own, but nobody found any reason to disagree with him. He then saw the four people he wanted to test were in the right place, just like he had programmed the robots to lead them to. "I think it is time for their next test. Ms. Shield, will you do the honors?"
With a wicked smile on her face, Melissa pulled out a remote with a big red button on it. "Let the games begin!" She slammed her hand down on it, and multiple things happened.